Microsoft has put a lot of dollars and effort into Windows Phone, even going as far as to buy Finnish handset firm Nokia in order to gain traction in the smartphone space. But despite this investment Windows Phone's usage share has grown from about one percent to around two percent over the past 12 months.

Starbucks is a leader in mobile payments and rewards, but I think they are going too far with plans to take the order phase from your face to your hand. Mobile payments are coming, but do we really need them for everything?

As large enterprises move toward Choose Your Own Device (CYOD) policies, the PC giant expects them to favor its wide portfolio's "commonality" and even more so once it becomes more dominant in the smartphone space.

Faced with competition from local players such as Xiaomi and Huawei, Apple is unlikely to sustain demand when the smartphone begins running on China Mobile's network from January 17, due to its premium price points.